[Elecraft] K3100 question

[PEN4WWZ at aol.com]

Hello  K3 users, 
I've  been fortunate to have a friend loan me his K3/100 for an evaluation  
to help me decide whether I want to order one. I've been following the  
Elecraft forum discussion regarding "external auto tuner" interfacing with  the 
K3.  
I  have my Ameritron AL-811 (600 watts) amp connected to this K3/100. I 
find that  the K3 Tune command (XMIT/Tune button set @ 15 watts) does not trip 
the  amplifier for tune up purposes though PTT trips it when I push it on  
the mic. It seems to me as though this is related to the signal handshake 
topic  regarding external auto tuners. Or perhaps it is something I did or did 
not do  within the rig’s configuration though I researched the ops manual  
extensively. 
So  far the K3/100 that I'm using seems like a great rig, easy front panel  
navigation and easy access to menus as well as a nice size footprint on my 
desk.  But I'm surprised and somewhat disappointed that Elecraft left this 
feature  (handshake) out  of their design. My Ten Tec Jupiter had this 
feature as does my Kenwood  TS-480SAT. It seems odd to me that a state of the art 
radio like the K3 has  this function missing or again, maybe I'm missing 
something in my setup  and configuration. 
I  think Elecraft is a top notch quality company though I'm not sure the K3 
at  this point will be my next rig. The price goes up at the end of this 
month  so it seems like I'll be making a decision shortly. Oh boy, decisions,  
decisions. 
If  I'm missing something regarding my amp/K3 configuration I’d appreciate 
feedback  so I can correct it. Many thanks, 
73,  
Paul  -AD5SX